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| The 'Share Internet connection and File and printer sharing' page Find the answer below. Get live help from 8am to 9pm Atl. Call 1-866-631-0985 or 506-386-6824. |
| How can we share one Internet connection among
several computers? |
Very easily and relatively inexpensively. You need to purchase a box called a router. Well-known brand names in this area are D-Link and Linksys. Stay away from cheap, lesser-known brands that are usually half the price of others, and usually only made available during promotions. While these may cost you less at the checkout, setup directives, wireless security and updates are usually second rate. A good router will cost you from $50-$80 in Canadian funds. Your router should come with printed quick setup instructions and a cd. Wired connections are usually ready quickly. For wireless connections, it may take an hour or more. If you don't have the time or patience, call us and we'll be happy to do it for you. Go back to computer question index.
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| Is there an easy way to share files and printers, i.e. to make them accessible, among several computers? |
Yes, there is if you are part of a peer-to-peer network in your home or office. A peer-to-peer network simply means your computer is sharing an Internet connection with other computers through the use of a router. Sharing files and printers on a regular network, i.e. a network server, is also possible but we are not covering that aspect in this answer. First off let's cover file-sharing:
1) Determine which files and folders that you wish to share with other users on your network. Right-click each of these files and folders and then click on Sharing. Make the files available and decide if you wish to allow users to have read-only access or if they are able to change them. Step 2) Ensure that all your networked computers have the same workgroup. To determine this, make this operation on each computer: click on Start, Control Panel (Settings), System, Computer Name. Notice the name next to Workgroup. Make any modifications necessary by clicking on the change button. The workgroup name that you choose does not matter as long as you all have the same one. Illegal characters will be pointed out to you if you attempt to use one. Step 3) Double-click on My Computer icon. If this icon is not on your Desktop, click on Start, find the icon, right-click on it and click next to Show on Desktop. Now click on My Computer. In the left-hand column click on My Network Places and presto, all the shared folders and files should appear in the remaining two thirds of your page. If not, you may have a firewall issue. Shut down all firewalls between computers and check by clicking on My Network Places again to see if the shared folders appear. If not, reboot your computer and try again. Make sure to re-activate firewalls once shared folders can be seen and accessed.
Now for printer-sharing. Step 1) From the computer that physically has the printed attached to it, click on Start, Control Panel (Settings) and Printers and Faxes. Find the printer you wish to share, and right-click on it. Click on Sharing, then place a dot by clicking in the circle next to Share this Printer and then click Ok. Step 2) Now that your printer is shared, go to a computer that wishes to have access to it. Click on Start, Control Panel (Settings) and Printers and Faxes. In the left-hand column of that page, click on Add a Printer, then at the Welcome to Add Printer Wizard, click on Next, and make sure that there is a dot next to A network printer. If not, put one then click on Next. On the next page entitled Specify printer, make sure there is a dot next to Browse for printer then click on Next. It may take up to one minute for the shared printer to appear in the list of shared printers. If it does not appear on the first try, back up a few steps and try again. If the printer will not appear, de-activate firewalls and try again. If that doesn't work, reboot and try again. Make sure all computers have the same workgroup name as specified in the first part of this answer on file-sharing. Go back to computer question index.
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